Triumvirate
A triumvirate is technically a government with three rulers at its head; however, in a nod to the concept of chaos inherent in the establishment of the United Villages of the Chaos (the second country on The Land, and the only one to be ruled by a triumvirate), there is a rule that at any given time the country may be headed by as few as three triumvirs or as many as may be deemed necessary, and still be referred to as a triumvirate. Triumvirs are elected to a three-year term of office. When the UVC was intially created by popular vote in the Secession Referendum of 913, the original triumvirate consisted of Darius Lonewander, Alecstar Inco, and Vallus Orator. Though the referendum included the proviso that those voting for secession from the Second Order to join the UVC would accept these three as the new country's heads of state, that provision only lasted for one year. In 914, the first official elections of the UVC were held, and the same three triumvirs were voted into office, being inaugurated in 915, for the start of their first official three-year term. The triumvirs of the UVC are in a position similar to that of First Nation's monarch, with all three (or however many) being technically equal in power. However, they may each have different duties, some of which are clearly defined, and some of which may vary based on the actual number of triumvirs in office at any given time. (These roles are similar to those of the departmental Directors of First Nation's Congress.) But ultimately the entire Triumvirate is subject to the will of the Mayoral Assembly, which in turn is subject to the will of the entire citizenry of the country. First Triumvir: In spite of the title, this triumvir is technically no higher than any of his or her fellow triumvirs in rank or authority. However, this is the position within the UVC which is most similar to First Nation's monarch. The FT's main duty is drafting federal laws, as well as acting as a sort of one-person appeals court. Any laws drafted by this triumvir must be approved unanimously by the Triumvirate, though thus far it has been rare for the UVC to enact any laws other than the ones already established by First Nation's own court system or its High Court. It's also possible for citizens to appeal the decisions of the UVC's courts, and the First Triumvir (sometimes referred to as the "triumvir of justice") may uphold or overturn these decisions, though this duty is rarely called upon. The first person to hold this position was Darius Lonewander, who claimed to have always had a strong sense of right and wrong, just and unjust. However, he was careful to point out that anyone could be wrong, even him. Therefore, one of the first laws he drafted, the Power of Veto, gave the Mayoral Assembly the right to overturn (by majority vote) any law passed by the Triumvirate, as well as any judicial overruling he had made of court decisions. When Lonewander vacated the position of First Triumvir in 916, Arthur Noblesse-Oblige agreed to assume the position on a pro tem basis, though he has said he doesn't intend to run for election to the position. Triumvir-General: This triumvir is in charge of the country's military, which makes it a position similar to that of First Nation's Marshal. While war cannot be declared except by a majority vote of both the Assembly and the Triumvirate, it was deemed important by the UVC's founders for the head of the military to not be outranked by an individual monarch, as is the case in First Nation. (This belief is due largely to the events which led to the Chaos War, with dissent between King Demos Royal and Marshal Poss Primus.) The first (and current) Triumvir-General is Alecstar Inco, who is also the General of the Chaos Army. One of the responsibilities of the T-G is to appoint people to the positions of General of the Army and Admiral of the Chaos Navy, both of whom would report directly to him. However, it is the triumvir's prerogative to retain either one of these positions for him or herself, and Inco is apparently most comfortable in his role as General. In fact, it is because of his holding the title of General of the Army that the word "General" was appended to the title for the UVC's military triumvir, in honor of Inco. Triumvir-Public: This triumvir is also called the "Speaker," in honor of the first person to hold the position, Vallus Orator. One of the Speaker's duties is to preside over meetings of the Mayoral Assembly. The Speaker has no actual authority over the Assembly, but merely acts as a moderator between the various mayors, as well as a liaison between the mayors and the Triumvirate. This allows for communication between federal and local government. Interaction between the Speaker and the Mayors is just one of the ways the triumvir keeps himself (and the Triumvirate) apprised of the will of the country's people. He or she also spends a good deal of time traveling between villages, and interacting directly with the people, to learn their thoughts and feelings on various matters firsthand. It is also common for the Triumvir-Public to attend Town Hall meetings of a village's board of selectmen. Those are the three clearly defined roles for triumvirs, though there is talk of including other roles. It has often been suggested that Tiejo Streetrat, head of the Allrat Fellowship, might become a triumvir to speak for the rights of Rats, though he has always displayed disinterest in any official governmental position. There has also been talk of Jasp Underground, chief of the Secret Service, becoming a triumvir, though he prefers to remain out of the public eye. There is also talk of establishing triumvirate roles that would equate to any of the Directors of First Nation's Congressional departments, though so far there is no indication that the Triumvirate has any desire for their government to have a say in most of the matters overseen by such departments. Category:Government